Brookings: Topics - Crime

Why Are Afghans Smiling?

Thu, 13 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Though Afghanistan has been at war much of the last 30 years, Carol Graham and Jeremy Shapiro find that Afghans remain surprisingly happy. Graham and Shapiro believe adaptations to crime and corruption play a major role and argue that better understanding of multiple happiness factors, including Taliban influence, should shape future U.S. strategy in the country.

The Merida Initiative and Central America: The Challenges of Containing Public Insecurity and Criminal Violence

Sun, 31 May 2009 00:00:00 GMT

The rising level of violence in Central America, as well as Mexico, has created sensational headlines and Hollywood style footage on the nightly news. Diana Negroponte examines the reasons for the growth in public insecurity and crime within El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras to determine an appropriate response.

The Merida Initiative and Central America

Tue, 26 May 2009 10:00:00 GMT

Event Information:

May 26, 2009, 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM

On May 26, the Latin America Initiative at Brookings and the Washington Office for Latin America hosted a discussion on the Central American component of the Merida Initiative, a 3-year program that provides funding for a wide-range of drug interdiction, prevention and intervention activities throughout Mexico, Central America and select Caribbean countries.

A Comparative Study of FARC and Paramilitary Groups in Colombia

Fri, 22 May 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Bilal Saab and Alexandra Taylor analyze how terrorist groups and armed insurgents in Colombia regularly exploit illicit markets to launder money, traffic illegal goods, and purchase arms. The authors find that group goals, the political environment, and membership strongly influence the types of criminal activities a given armed group undertakes. They conclude that membership and political agenda of sub-state armed groups not only distinguishes them from criminal groups, but also shapes their criminal behavior.

Drugs and Democracy: Toward a Paradigm Shift

Wed, 22 Apr 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Kevin Casas-Zamora believes the report of the Latin American Commission on Drugs and Democracy is a significant addition to an urgent conversation in the hemisphere. Casas-Zamora argues that, with a new U.S. administration far less hooked to the socially conservative attitudes that have long defined the debate, a frank discussion on drugs—both domestic and international—can at last begin.

Assessment of the Implementation of the United States Government's Support for Plan Colombia's Illicit Crop Reduction Components

Fri, 17 Apr 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Vanda Felbab-Brown and several other authors produced a report evaluating Plan Columbia for review by the United States Agency for Development. The study provides an assessment of the success of counternarcotics strategies to date and offers recommendations for the U.S. government to strengthen future efforts.

The Summit of the Americas and Regional Development Banks

Thu, 16 Apr 2009 09:51:07 GMT

Mauricio Cárdenas, director of the Latin America Initiative, says the focus of the fifth Summit of the Americas will be the global economic crisis. He also explains that the nations need to agree on strengthening regional development banks and that certain countries need open trade.

The Fifth Summit of the Americas: Recommendations for Action

Mon, 13 Apr 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Leaders of the Western Hemisphere gathered in Trinidad and Tobago on April 17-19, 2009 for the fifth Summit of the Americas. In a series of commentary articles focused on the summit's agenda and key challenges, Brookings experts discuss critical economic, social, energy and climate change issues facing the leaders attending the summit and propose recommendations for policy action.

Drugs and Democracy: Toward a Paradigm Shift

Mon, 06 Apr 2009 10:00:00 GMT

Event Information:

April 06, 2009, 10:00 AM to 11:30 AM

On April 6, the Brookings Institution hosted former President of Brazil Fernando Henrique Cardoso and former President of Colombia César Gaviria for the U.S. release of the report “Drugs and Democracy: Toward a Paradigm Shift” by the Latin American Commission on Drugs and Democracy. As co-presidents of the Commission, Presidents Cardoso and Gaviria presented findings of the report and discussed its recommendations for reducing harm caused by illegal narcotics to people, societies and public institutions.

The Violent Drug Market in Mexico and Lessons from Colombia

Mon, 09 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Drug-related violence and the breakdown in security in Mexico have escalated to extraordinary levels over the past two years. Vanda Felbab-Brown examines this growing threat to civil society in Mexico, the spillover of crime into the U.S., how the situation compares to similar struggles in Colombia, and offers recommendations for a new strategy in the region.

Drug Wars in Mexico

Thu, 26 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Mexico's Attorney General says his country does not need help in its fight against drug cartels. But some including Vanda Felbab-Brown see the increased violence as a national security threat to U.S. Felbab-Brown joined Diane Rehm and guests to discuss drug violence in Mexico and how it is affecting its northern neighbor.

Only the U.S. Can Win War on Drugs

Wed, 25 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Andrés Rozental and Stanley Weiss examine Mexico's difficult fight against drug cartels and how the continued high number of Americans using illicit drugs is helping push Mexico toward the brink. As Mexico fights its war on supply, Rozental and Weiss argue the U.S. must fulfill its responsibility to curb the war on demand while also considering gradual legalization of some substances.

Peacekeepers Among Poppies: Afghanistan, Illicit Economies and Intervention

Thu, 12 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Vanda Felbab-Brown analyzes the role that the illicit narcotics economy has played in violent conflict in Afghanistan since the 1990s and the relationship between counter-narcotics and counter-insurgency policy in the country today. Felbab-Brown provides policy recommendations on the security role of peacekeeping forces with respect to illicit economies.

From Prison to Work: A Proposal for a National Prisoner Reentry Program

Thu, 04 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Around seven hundred thousand mostly low-income and minority men and women are released from prison each year. Returning to lives of low wages and high rates of unemployment, about two thirds will be rearrested within three years. Bruce Western proposes a national prisoner reentry program whose core element is up to a year of transitional employment available to all parolees in need of work.

Re-Thinking U.S.-Latin American Relations: A Hemispheric Partnership for a Turbulent World

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 10:30:00 GMT

Event Information:

November 24, 2008, 10:30 AM to 12:00 PM

On November 24, the Brookings Institution hosted the Partnership for the Americas Commission for the release of their report, “Re-thinking U.S.-Latin American Relations: A Hemispheric Partnership for a Turbulent World," which offers a set of policy recommendations to the next U.S. administration to meet the challenges facing the U.S. and Latin America, from economic and poverty policies to security, foreign policy and energy.

Pay Attention to Latin America

Sun, 23 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT

In a new op-ed outlining the recommendations by Brookings’s Partnership for the Americas Commission, co-chairs Ernesto Zedillo and Thomas Pickering detail the need for stronger hemispheric relations and outline five areas for potential policy partnerships for the next administration.

Land Banking as Metropolitan Policy

Tue, 28 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT

A new Blueprint paper argues that the rising number of vacant and abandoned properties around the nation requires a more robust drive by the federal government to aid states and localities in land banking. The author, Frank Alexander of Emory University, recommends that federal policy should better capitalize local and regional land banking (the process or policy by which local governments acquire surplus properties and convert them to productive use), encourage code reform and regional collaboration.

Keeping Adolescents Out of Prison

Wed, 15 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Ron Haskins and Laurence Steinberg, in this companion to the new edition of The Future of Children devoted to juvenile justice, examine the problem of youth confinement in correctional facilities, including adult jails and prisons. They pay special attention to why harsh punishment of adolescents is not only often unjust but also counterproductive and make recommendations for more appropriate and cost-effective responses to youth crime.

Juvenile Justice

Wed, 15 Oct 2008 09:00:00 GMT

Event Information:

October 15, 2008, 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM

After a decade of declining juvenile crime rates, the forces that fueled the “get-tough” reforms of the 1990s have waned, as has enthusiasm for the reforms that eroded the boundaries between juvenile and criminal court, exposing juvenile offenders to harsh punishments. The antisocial acts that bring young people into contact with the justice system are often accompanied by other problems, most of which the justice system alone is ill-equipped to address. A slate of panelists, will discuss reforming juvenile justice to reflect these differences between adolescent and adult offenders.

Crime in Latin America

Tue, 05 Aug 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Brookings expert Kevin Casas-Zamora writes that Latin American democracies must deal seriously with the mounting casualties of violence across the continent. He believes a comprehensive policy of reform among police forces, and the introduction of modern technology as well as more investment in civil society, can create lasting and sustainable solutions to crime.

Managing Civil Violence & Regional Conflict

Mon, 05 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Fragile states are both a cause and manifestation of a breakdown in international order, and civil violence often ends up crossing borders. The Managing Global Insecurity project examines new challenges to regional and international security and offers suggestions for dealing with them.

The Consolidation of Judicial Reform in Latin America: Fantasy or Reality?

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 12:30:00 GMT

Event Information:

April 24, 2008, 12:30 PM to 2:00PM

The Transparency and Accountability Project hosted Diana Villiers Negroponte, Brookings Nonresident Senior Fellow, to discuss the elements necessary for effective judicial reform in Latin America and the obstacles thrown into its path.

What Happens If the Supreme Court Recognizes Individual Gun Rights? Not Much.

Fri, 21 Mar 2008 00:00:00 GMT

A decision recognizing an individual right to gun ownership will put a limit on how far gun control can go, writes Ben Wittes. Those who dream of a gun-free society will have to dream of ratifying a new constitutional amendment.

The Death Clock: Don't Count Out the Death Penalty Yet

Mon, 07 Jan 2008 00:00:00 GMT

The U.S. Supreme Court is hearing arguments on whether the drugs used in lethal injections constitute cruel and unusual punishment. While capital punishment appears on the wane, Benjamin Wittes argues that this will not be the end of the death penalty.

More COPS

Thu, 01 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT

FBI statistics suggest that violent crime rates increased from 2004 to 2005, and continued to climb through at least the first half of 2006. The massive drop in violent crime witnessed in the 1990s, when homicide rates declined by nearly 45 percent, has stalled since the turn of the millennium (Figure 1). As the Washington Post noted in a front-page article in December 2006, "the historic drop in the U.S. crime rate has ended and is being reversed."

What Should Be the Future of the Death Penalty?

Tue, 05 Sep 2006 14:00:00 GMT

Event Information:

September 05, 2006, 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM

Brookings continued its Judicial Issues Forum series with a discussion on whether the death penalty deters crime, whether it is administered fairly, whether death row exonerations prove the system a failure, whether federal courts should provide more-or less-supervision of state death sentences, and whether the abhorrence of our death penalty regime overseas should tip Americans of mixed views toward the abolitionist position.

Give Illegal Immigrants Licenses and Obligations

Sun, 20 Aug 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by Peter Skerry; Los Angeles Times (8/20/06)

To Take a Bite Out of Crime: Safeguard the Census

Mon, 26 Jun 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by Andrew Reamer (6/26/06)

Transitioning Ex-Offenders into Jobs and Society

Mon, 10 Apr 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by Hugh B. Price, washingtonpost.com (4/10/06)

Governing Gotham: Lessons from Rudolph Giuliani's Successes and Failures

Wed, 13 Jul 2005 10:00:00 GMT

Event Information:

July 13, 2005, 10:00 AM to 11:30 AM

Do Police Reduce Crime?

Thu, 07 Oct 2004 12:00:00 GMT

Event Information:

October 07, 2004, 12:00 PM to 1:30 PM

Do Police Reduce Crime? Estimates Using the Allocation of Police Forces After a Terrorist Attack

Fri, 01 Oct 2004 00:00:00 GMT

Di Tella discusses isolated effect of police presence on crime

Federal Prison Industries: Fair to business, vital to society

Mon, 01 Mar 2004 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by Larry D. Thompson, Federal Times (3/1/04)

Terrorism and the U.S. Criminal Justice System

Sun, 12 Oct 2003 00:00:00 GMT

Speech by Larry D. Thompson, American Board of Criminal Lawyers (10/12/03)

Criminal Justice Reform

Fri, 10 Oct 2003 00:00:00 GMT

Speech by Larry D. Thompson

Evaluating Gun Policy : Effects on Crime and Violence

Tue, 18 Feb 2003 00:00:00 GMT

Policymakers have tried to combat gun-related violence and crime in various ways: including sentence enhancements, restricting access, and banning certain models and designs. Yet far too little is currently known about the efficacy of these policies.

American Cities: Federal Neglect Imperils Their Rise

Thu, 09 Jan 2003 00:00:00 GMT

This Opinion by Bruce Katz in the Baltimore Sun, January 9, 2003 calls on Congress to provide states and cities necessary fiscal relief and to reverse its drift toward unfunded mandates and programmatic inflexibility.

Rights, Liberties, and Security: Recalibrating the Balance after September 11

Wed, 01 Jan 2003 00:00:00 GMT

Brookings Review article by Stuart Taylor (Winter 2003)

Local Police Should Not Do a Federal Job

Wed, 08 May 2002 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by James Lindsay, Senior Fellow, and Audrey Singer, Visiting Fellow, in The New York Times, May 8, 2002

New Year Resolutions For Cities

Tue, 08 Jan 2002 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by Bruce Katz, Senior Fellow, The Brookings Institution

The Billy Tauzin Show

Fri, 16 Feb 2001 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by E.J. Dionne, Jr., Senior Fellow, Governmental Studies, The Brookings Institution, in The Washington Post, February 16, 2001

Smoking Gun? Democrats Wonder Whether One Side Issue Gave Decisive Ammo to the GOP

Tue, 13 Feb 2001 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by E.J. Dionne, Jr., Senior Fellow, Governmental Studies, The Brookings Institution, in Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, February 6, 2001

Fighting Crime in Oakland

Thu, 01 Jun 2000 00:00:00 GMT

Brookings Review article by Jerry Brown (Summer 2000)

Federal Crime Policy: Time for a Moratorium

Wed, 01 Dec 1999 00:00:00 GMT

Brookings Review article by John J. DiIulio, Jr. (Winter 1999)

Reinventing Parole and Probation: A lock-'m-up hardliner makes the case for probation

Sat, 01 Mar 1997 00:00:00 GMT

Brookings Review article by John J. DiIulio, Jr. (Spring 1997)

Stop Crime Where it Starts

Wed, 31 Jul 1996 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by John J. DiIulio, Jr., Nonresident Senior Fellow, the Brookings Institution, in the New York Times, July 31, 1996

Defining Criminality Up

Wed, 03 Jul 1996 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by John J. DiIulio, Jr., Nonresident Senior Fellow, the Brookings Institution, in The Wall Street Journal, July 3, 1996

The Numbers Don't Lie: It's the Hard Core Doing Hard Time

Sun, 17 Mar 1996 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by John J. DiIulio, Jr., Nonresident Senior Fellow, the Brookings Institution, in The Washington Post, March 17, 1996

Broken Bottles: Alcohol, Disorder, and Crime

Fri, 01 Mar 1996 00:00:00 GMT

Brookings Review, Spring 1996

Drug Legalization?: Time for a real debate

Fri, 01 Mar 1996 00:00:00 GMT

Brookings Review, Spring 1996

Fill Churches, Not Jails: Youth Crime and ""Superpredators""

Wed, 28 Feb 1996 00:00:00 GMT

Testimony by John J. DiIulio, Jr. nonresident Senior Fellow, Governmental Studies, the Brookings Institution, before the Subcommittee on Youth Violence, U.S. Senate, February 28, 1996

Prisons are a Bargain, by Any Measure

Tue, 16 Jan 1996 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by John J. DiIulio, Jr., Nonresident Senior Fellow, the Brookings Institution, in The New York Times, January 16, 1996